World Series: Kluber sharp, offense potent as Indians move within win of championship

Sunday

Oct 30, 2016 at 1:29 AMOct 30, 2016 at 1:29 AM

Adam JardyThe Columbus Dispatch

CHICAGO — It was during the top of the fifth inning that one Cubs fan in the last row of Wrigley Field had seen and heard enough. Or, to be more precise, not nearly enough.

“Let’s have some fun!” he shouted at a defeated crowd. “Come on!”

It was arguably quiet enough within the Friendly Confines for his voice to carry across the field to the first-base dugout, where the Cleveland Indians sat with a 3-1 lead.

If they heard him, his words rang redundant.

For a second straight night, the Indians crashed the biggest baseball party on Chicago’s North Side in more than 70 years as Corey Kluber made his presence felt on the mound and in the batter’s box, Carlos Santana and Jason Kipnis slammed home runs into the teeth of a wind blowing in from the outfield and the Indians beat the Cubs 7-2 to take a 3-1 lead in the World Series.

Tonight, Trevor Bauer will have the chance to pitch the Indians to their first title since 1948 against a team that won a league-high 103 regular-season games this year.

One night after nobody even approached a home run despite a significant breeze blowing out, a steady wind had all the flags pointed toward home plate. It didn’t matter for Santana, who blasted a 3-and-2 pitch to lead off the second inning to right field for his third home run of the postseason.

It was the first World Series home run hit at Wrigley since Hank Greenberg in 1945. Santana’s shot tied it 1-1, but the Indians weren’t done for the inning.

With two strikes, Lonnie Chisenhall fouled off two pitches before hitting a bouncer deep into the hole at short that third baseman Kris Bryant caught. He spun and fired wildly to first, allowing Chisenhall to reach on an error. Center fielder Tyler Naquin was intentionally walked to bring Kluber to the plate with two outs.

Kluber, a career .118 hitter who was 1 for 4 (.250) this season, worked the count full and pulled a pitch just foul down the third-base line. Then, on the eighth pitch of the at-bat, Kluber hit essentially a swinging bunt to third and beat out the throw.

First baseman Anthony Rizzo dropped the ball and Chisenhall raced around third for the go-ahead run on the error.

After six innings and five hits allowed, Kluber was lifted for a pinch hitter with the Indians ahead 4-1. He’s thrown 30 1/3 innings this postseason and allowed three runs for an 0.89 ERA. He had a good view from the dugout when Chicago native Jason Kipnis put it out of reach with a three-run home run to right in the seventh inning.

Kluber became the first pitcher to win Games 1 and 4 of the World Series since Jose Rijo in 1990. The Indians are the first team to come from behind to win a game since the start of the American League Championship Series.

After being shut out twice in the first three games, Chicago struck first. Leadoff hitter Dexter Fowler fouled off two 0-and-2 pitches and blooped a double into left field just past the outstretched glove of a diving Rajai Davis, and Rizzo brought him home with a single to center for the 1-0 lead. Fowler became the first Cubs player to score a World Series run at Wrigley Field since Peanuts Lowrey in Game 7 in 1945.